The $19.99 Ikea miracle

Ikea has become a staple in most people’s homes. Despite your best intentions to look for unique pieces, you end up in the huge warehouse more often than you like to admit. And the experience is not always great. In fact, there are many things wrong with Ikea.

Most of the furniture is made of shoddy and/or toxic materials in Chinese factories. The chaos on weekends is insufferable, with tens of thousands of people pouring into the showroom, following the patronizing arrows in the enormous maze like lemmings. The creepy, pre-fab “rooms” that are meant to mimic a home simultaneously draw you in and repulse you. And most disturbing of all, you object to the idea of so much stuff being churned out for consumers all over the world that will most likely end up in the dump.

Then, on your next visit, you come upon a small miracle. Something so simple and perfect that captures all of what Ikea is about. Inexpensive, utilitarian, and beautiful: The $19.99 duvet set.